QMJHL 2014-15 Thread

[MonctonRad]

Time to start up a new thread for the new season. We'll ignore the fact that the forecast high today in Moncton is 32C.

Atlantic Division Players Selected in the 2014 NHL Draft:

- Nikolaj Ehlers, Halifax Mooseheads (first round, Winnipeg Jets)
- Ivan Barbashev, Moncton Wildcats (second round, Saint Louis Blues)
- Mason McDonald, Charlottetown Islanders (second round, Calgary Flames)
- Julien Pelletier, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (fourth round, Columbus Blue Jackets)
- Clark Bishop, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (fifth round, Carolina Hurricanes)
- Cameron Darcy, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (seventh round, Tampa Bay Lightning)
- Olivier LeBlanc, Saint John Sea Dogs (seventh round, Columbus Blue Jackets).

As far as Barbashev is concerned, he had been projected to go as high as 18th in the draft, and it was certainly a surprise that he wasn't chosen in the first round, but going to the Blues is ideal for him. His former line mate on the Wildcats two years ago (Dimitrij Jaskin) is with the Blues organization and they are good friends. Jaskin was called up from the farm team and played 18 games with the Blues last year and it would be tremendous if they eventually became line mates on the team.

It was a little surprising that Vladimir Tkachev of the Wildcats wasn't chosen in the draft. He is certainly skilled enough.

Possible reasons:
- he only played 20 games with the Cats last year. He may be too much of an unknown quantity.
- he is quite small, which is a detriment with the modern NHL.
- he is Russian, which always raises the KHL factor.

If Tkachev performs as expected this year, and is seen as being committed to North American hockey, I'm sure he will eventually be taken as a free agent. There are lots of Wildcats playing professional hockey as former free agents.

[JHikka]

Ehlers will be returning to Halifax for the 14-15 season. I'll be interested to see what kind of numbers he can put up this season. He should be playing this season without Drouin as a linemate, who will certainly play in Tampa this season.

There are rumours that 11th overall draft pick Kevin Fiala will be joining the Quebec Remparts this season via the CHL Import Draft, which will be taking place this Wednesday.

Cape Breton's CHL Import selection from last year, Yevgeni Svechnikov, has already committed to the Screaming Eagles and will play for them this season. He joins other Russian import Maxim Lazarev on the team.

I'm not quite sold on this Saint John team yet. Cooper was traded to Charlottetown and Zilbert to Gatineau, the latter of which is no great loss. I'm expecting the younger guys to step up this season, in particular Noel and Dove-McFalls. The defence, anchored by freshly drafted LeBlanc, should be improved. SJ were the youngest team in the league last year and certainly played like it at times. It will be exciting to see what the Green twins can put up for numbers in their rookie season!

[MonctonRad]

Danny Flynn has moved on and is no longer with the Moncton Wildcats. He will be joining his old friend Ted Nolan as an assistant coach with the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL.

Here's wishing Danny all the best in the future......

[MonctonRad]

The CHL rankings are out and the Moncton Wildcats (7-2-0-0) are ranked #7 in the country.

[Trevor3]

Cape Breton has looked great offensively, Lazarev and Svechnikov has been fantastic, Farrel is one fire (21 points so far, with 12 goals for a share of the league lead), and they just got Cameron Darcy back from Tampa Bay.

It seemed like they had some defensive problems early on, but since Duncan McIntyre came into the line-up they've been much better. Time will tell if they can keep it together but it looks promising right now.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

The CHL rankings are out and the Moncton Wildcats (7-2-0-0) are ranked #7 in the country.

Watched them last week. Very small team up front (Tkachev and Garland, in particular) but they're buoyed by Dubeau in net. Decent team that plays a bit of a weird breakout/outlet game. Unorthodox for the Q but it worked ok in the game I saw.

[MonctonRad]

I feel sorry for Garland. He's a very skilled player and an excellent puck handler. He's just too small for the NHL though. It's too bad.

Tkachev on the other hand was picked up as a free agent by the Edmonton Oilers and really impressed the team in the NHL pre season - enough to be offered a three year entry level contract. Unfortunately for him, the contract was voided by the NHL because he hadn't played long enough in North America prior to last years draft. This means he will be eligible for the 2015 draft (and this time I'm sure he'll be picked up in the first or second round).

[Walk then Run]

We'll let the Cats have their fun for awhile ...the Dogs are just warming up with a 5-2-0-2 record. Throw in those two shoot out losses and we'd be 7-2-0-0.

Memorial Cup contenders?? Well one can dream

GO DOGS GO!

[MonctonRad]

The Wildcats took out the Sea Dogs tonight by a score of 7-0.

It sounds pretty lopsided, but the Dogs were their own worst enemies tonight. The got down 2-0 by early in the second period and then completely lost discipline, taking a huge number of stupid (and I mean stupid) penalties. The game was over by the end of the second period.

I think the Dogs are a much better team than that. I think they were off to such a good start at the beginning of the season that they couldn't believe that a game could go so horribly wrong. They had begun to believe their own hype and just couldn't take the adversity. This game will be a very important learning experience for them. I imagine the coach will make an example of this.

So, the Cats and the Dogs are now tied at 16 points atop the Atlantic Division of the QMJHL. The Cats were expected to be there. I think the Dogs are surprising a lot of people. As long as they can control their emotions, they should be there for the long haul this year. It will be interesting to see what happens from here on in..........

[Walk then Run]

Good summary...I believe their heads did swell a bit with the recent CHL standings this week.

Frustrating bounces and poor decisions early on can stress even the best of them. This is the first game of this season where the loss of self control was as rampant as the rubber hitting the back of the twine. While I was watching the game on the internet, I questioned myself if I had accidentally hit the "back in time" button and was watching last year's Sea Dogs squad.

Going to tonight's game at Harbour Station (pink in the rink night) and I hope both teams bring their A-game, as I don't want to pay to see another 7-0 blowout!

[JHikka]

After Moncton defeated Saint John 7-0 Friday, Saint John defeated Moncton 7-1 on Saturday Noel led the way for SJ with 2+2 while Marsh and Smallman were 1+2.

Of note, the attendance in Moncton was 4181 and in Saint John 4146.

[Walk then Run]

I'm going to call this year's 2014-15 Rivalry Cup the "Jekyll & Hyde" Cup because it was as if the teams each had their own Jekyll night.

The first few minutes of the game was fantastic and I hope further meetings between the clubs play out like this for an entire 60 minutes. Moncton has a highly skilled team and the Dogs are not too shabby themselves either.

I can't wait for the next head to head match!

Go Dogs Go!

[Walk then Run]

Originally Posted by Walk then Run

Memorial Cup contenders?? Well one can dream

Surprise of the year??...the Sea Dogs are now ranked #3 in the CHL! Not that this means much, but it's nice to see them in the top 10. There win in Bathurst last night (4-2) was not shocking, which now gives them a 12-3-0-3 record for 27 points (second overall in the Q). One could argue that the Maritime Division is the weakest out of the three, so points may come easier within divisional play.

Besides playing the Mooseheads this Friday, the real litmus test will be this Wednesday when they travel to Quebec to play the Remparts. The last time they met (Oct. 26th) in SJ, the Remparts got the shoot out victory. Should be a good game!

[MonctonRad]

I'm certainly surprised by the Sea Dogs so far this year. Their success seems to have come entirely out of left field. Sometimes a team will succeed beyond all expectations despite not having any real stars. This can happen with good coaching and good team chemistry where everyone buys into the system. Kudos (so far).

The Wildcats are currently 11-8-0-0 for 22 points and are second in the division (8th in the league). I am somewhat disappointed by their performance so far this year. They have been a model of inconsistency. Sometimes their talent level will show and they will blow the opposition out of the water. At other times it looks like they've come out for a light practice rather than to actually play a competitive game. I wonder if there are problems in the clubhouse???

Vladimir Tkachev has been off his game for some time now. I think he is bitter and disappointed that the NHL vetoed the entry level contract he signed with the Edmonton Oilers after his free agent tryout this year. Perhaps he resents having to play in Moncton instead. If this is the case, he had better get over it real quick because NHL scouts will take notice of any attitude problems and this will be a red flag at next years NHL draft. If he wants to succeed in North American hockey, he has to get with the game!

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Walk then Run

One could argue that the Maritime Division is the weakest out of the three, so points may come easier within divisional play.

By the numbers the Maritimes are the weakest but i'd argue the West is weaker. Val-d'Or, Drummondville, and Rouyn-Noranda are some baaaad teams. Blainville have been on a great streak but they're not that great, either. It's been an odd season so far...Rimouski should be walking away with it, but haven't...Quebec and Sherbrooke have been playing well but should be doing better..

Sea Dogs are good but won't win the league this year. 3rd in the country is probably too high for them. Their big year will be next year after Zboril and Noel are drafted and returned to the team. They'll need a goalie as Auger will be gone, so hopefully either Mann-Dixon develops or they pick up a vet for a big run. Green twins in their draft year should be good indeed.

Average attendances thus far (2013-2014 final att.):

Halifax................7,412.....(8,168)
Moncton..............3,689.....(4,427)
Saint John...........3,231.....(3,423)
Cape Breton.........2,791.....(2,432)
Charlottetown.......2,067.....(2,439)
Acadie-Bathurst.....1,740.....(1,682)

Encouraging numbers out of Cape Breton and Bathurst as September/October are the worst months for attendance. Bathurst have a higher attendance after the rebrand despite having the worst team in the league. The Christmas break and playoffs runs always provide for increases in attendance. Halifax is down, to be expected, as Moncton, Charlottetown, and Saint John should upswing as the season progresses. Overall looking pretty good.

[Walk then Run]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Sometimes a team will succeed beyond all expectations despite not having any real stars. This can happen with good coaching and good team chemistry where everyone buys into the system. Kudos (so far).

Players need to have cohesiveness as a team, that is for sure. If Tkachev is a little upset, I can see it reaking havoc in the dressing room and espeically on the ice. May be a culture thing as well.

For the Sea Dogs, it looks as if all things are clicking and running smoothly (so far so good). Guys to watch out for are Marsh and Noel. The Dogs really lucked out with Marsh, picking him up out of Chicago. His dad is Peter Marsh who played in the Q in the 70's and in the NHL for the Jets and Blackhawks.

As for goalies, that is always a wait and see kind of thing. For now we have a small young Bluenoser (Mann-Dixon) and a Floridian...yes a Floridian (Dugan) as our back ups. The cream will rise to the top.

[MonctonRad]

The Moncton Wildcats staged an impressive 5-4 come from behind overtime victory last night against the Halifax Mooseheads.

As is typical for the Cats this year, they had a slow start and were behind 3-0 early in the second period. They didn't really catch fire until the last 15 minutes of the third period. The hero of the game was Moncton native Stephen Johnston. He scored a natural hat trick over the span of about 10 minutes (including the overtime winner) to lead the victory. He was mobbed by his team mates after the winning goal. It felt (and looked) like he had just scored the President's Cup winning goal!

Still, I don't know what's wrong with the Cats so far this year. They may be 13-8-0-0 for second place in the division, but they should be so much better than this. They just seem to be lacking some motivation. The desire and drive needed to be a championship team just doesn't seem to be there (so far) this season.......

[MonctonRad]

The Cats destroyed the Victoriaville Tigres tonight by a score of 8-3



The attack was led by Conor Garland and Ivan Barbashev who both had six point nights. Garland had 3 goals and 3 assists and Barbashev had 2 goals and 4 assists.

Uncharacteristically, the Wildcats are now the highest scoring team in the QMJHL this year. They have won 6 out of their last 7 games and now are in third place in the league.

This streak is impressive since the Cats have been without two of their star players (Lalonde and Tkachev) for the last 4-5 games.

[josh_cat_eyes]

The Charlottetown Islanders have a few players who will get drafted this year! I'm going to try and make it to the Wildcats vs Islanders game on the 30th. Should be lots of high end talent in that game.

[MonctonRad]

Moncton suffered a 5-4 shootout loss to Drummondville last night. We should have won. We were ahead 4-2 with a little over two minutes to play in the third period when Barbashev took a stupid penalty. This allowed Drummondville a 6-4 player advantage as they pulled their goalie and they were able to score twice to tie the game.

Despite this, Moncton is now (temporarily) #1 in the division, but the Sea Dogs have two games in hand.

Standings____________________G__W_L_OTL_SOL_P__PCT__GF_GA
1 Moncton Wildcats.......................24..15..8....0.....1....31..0.646..102..84
2 Saint John Sea Dogs...................22..14..5....0.....3....31..0.705...84..67
3 Charlottetown Islanders..............24..11..11...1.....1....24..0.500...74..85
4 Halifax Mooseheads....................24...9..12....2.....1....21..0.438...65..94
5 Cape Breton Screaming Eagles.....24...8..12....2....2.....20..0.417...87..93
6 Acadie-Bathurst Titan.................24...7..15....1.....1....16...0.333...69..94